The Literature Network - Devil's Dictionary, The

Devil's Dictionary, The

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From: The Concise Oxford Companion to American Literature
Date: 19860101
Author:James D. Hart

Devil's Dictionary, The, by Ambrose Bierce , was first published as The Cynic's Word Book (1906) and retitled in 1911. Collected from newspaper contributions (1881–1906), and addressed to “enlightened souls who prefer dry wines to sweet, sense to sentiment, wit to humor, and clean English to slang,” the volume contains witty, concise “definitions” reflecting Bierce's bold social criticism, pessimism, and skeptical philosophy.

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